1. Field of the Invention
The invention is directed to the field of insulation piercing contacts for use with flat cable and which permits the conductors of such flat cable to be coupled to other electrical terminal points.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior art devices for piercing through the insulation of insulated conductors usually consisted of a contact member fabricated from a flat piece of material, punched or stamped so as to provide a contact with two arms and a tail portion. The arms, each terminating in a pointed free end, defined an insulation piercing slot therebetween. To maintain the greatest degree of flexibility, to permit reuse and to provide for a range of conductor sizes which the contact could handle, thin metal stock was generally employed. This flexibility of the contact, at times, led to its excess deflection and distortion during insulation piercing with a resultant poor contact with the conductor. Also, the sharp ends of the contact breached the insulation but did not tear it so as to permit easy engagement with the contact. With stiff insulation the effect often was the bending of one or both of the contact arms with the attendant lack of electrical contact.